Monday, July 13, 2015

Come on over to LynnRMitchell.com for all the latest in opinions, thoughts, and news about politics and what's happening in the SWAC -- Staunton, Waynesboro, and Augusta County -- areas of Virginia, as well as photos of the places we travel.

I think you'll enjoy our contributors and guest posters as we continue our journey after nine years participating in the Virginia conservative blogosphere. Hope to see you there!

UPDATE December 2015: In addition to writing at LynnRMitchell.com, I have rejoined my colleagues at Bearing Drift as we cover the Commonwealth with the most widespread conservative voice of Virginia.

Thursday, April 16, 2015

An Alabama blogger has been ordered to pay $3.5 million in settlement
after he falsely accused a campaign manager of having an affair with an
attorney general candidate that resulted in a son.

Described as one of the worst cases of cyber-bullying, the campaign
manager, Jessica Medeiros Garrison who is a Birmingham lawyer, sued the
blogger and won, noting, “The absolute and blatant disregard for the
truth has to come with consequences” (continue reading here).

Monday, April 13, 2015

With Florida Senator Marco Rubio set to announce today that he is running for U.S. President, it is worth looking at how Republicans in Florida feel about their former Governor Jeb Bush and Senator Rubio getting into the same race.

While many would like to see Rubio run for re-election in the senate, if both end up in the presidential race it will mean Floridians must decide between them. (continue reading here....)

Journalist Bernie Goldberg asks some pertinent questions about the
Rolling Stone rape story directed at the University of Virginia (see What the media left out of the phony Rolling Stone story).
This is the story that Rolling Stone has just shrugged off even after
the damning report from Columbia School of Journalism that revealed just
about every rule in journalism was broken in the pursuit of a
sensationalistic story concerning UVa:

The Rolling Stone story about a student named Jackie who
said she was ganged raped at a fraternity house at the University of
Virginia is a textbook example of journalistic malpractice. Rolling
Stone got just about everything wrong. For openers, there was no gang
rape. The reporter didn’t even try to talk to the alleged rapists. And
now, a review of the botched story by the Columbia University Graduate
School of Journalism concludes that Rolling Stone failed to engage in
“basic, even routine journalistic practice.”

And Goldberg’s disbelief is that Rolling Stone seems to have
completely overlooked the fact that an entire campus was roiled at a
time... (continue reading here....)

By Lynn R. Mitchell
Bearing
Drift's "Big Line" predictions have not been updated since March 5,
2015, so I'm going to update Senate District 24. Interestingly, their
editorial board got it wrong.

Emmett
Hanger was successful in court (by the way, there is no such thing as
the "incumbent protection act," a name made up by the 24th legislative
committee). Dan Moxley was not on the winning side of the lawsuit that
called for a faux convention. Marshall Pattie was able to stay out of
the fray but is he too far removed from the action to have a real
possibility at winning on June 9?

Saturday, March 14, 2015

It is known as Virginia's Switzerland, this rural, mountainous, southern-most location for gathering maple syrup, and it is right here in our back yard. Just 45 miles west of Staunton, picturesque Highland County hosts its 57th annual Maple Festival during the weekends of (read more with photos at LynnRMitchell.com).

Saturday, February 14, 2015

By Kathy Walton LafonGuest PostBroken Together: As I was delivering singing Valentines
yesterday, I was traveling in Augusta County and flipping through radio
stations. This song came on and as I listened, I decided I needed to
pull off on the country road and really listen. I did … then I had a
good cry, blew my nose, and went back to singing love songs.... (read more at LynnRMitchell.com)

Friday, February 13, 2015

"Evil is real. There is no light grey. Murdering innocent people to move a political point of view has been, is, and always will be evil." -George W. Bush (2015)

Former President George W. Bush had a heaping helping of his usual optimistic leadership advice for an audience earlier this week at the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor as part of the McLane Lecture series (see Former President George W. Bush visits Central Texas). But he was also a realist about terrorism that continues in today's world.

On Feb. 13, a parade of special guests, each with an entourage and some requiring special accommodations, will appear at the non-denominational church for a night Fasano vows they will never forget. The church is one of dozens across the country taking part in “Night to Shine,” a prom-style evening of dining and dancing for special needs teenagers organized by the foundation of former NFL quarterback Tim Tebow. The same scenario is playing out at 49 other churches in 26 states as well as Amazing Grace International Ministries, in Nairobi, Kenya, and Ekisa Ministries, in Jinja, Uganda.

Tebow, 27, a devout Christian who quarterbacked the Florida Gators to two national championships and won the Heisman Trophy before a brief NFL career, said the special night will honor teens who struggle with a variety of disabilities.

I have been wanting a copy of "Back Roads: People, Places and Pie Around Virginia" featuring photos by Bob Brown and narrative by Bill Lohmann, both with the Richmond Times-Dispatch, so for my birthday my step-dad presented a copy with the inscription, "Happy birthday to our ultimate 'back road' traveler."

Bill Lohmann dedicated one of his RTD columns to this work of art from these two friends, writing remembrances in his comfortable story-telling style that has made him a favorite for years (see Lohmann: Bob Brown still focused on work and fun):

It doesn't amaze me so much when we're driving down a winding back road in the hinterlands of Virginia that I can't even find on a map and Bob Brown matter-of-factly says that just around the next bend, there's a terrific little diner that serves the best breakfast (and outstanding pie at lunch).
Or just over that hill coming up, on the right, next to a giant oak and across from a swinging bridge, there's a pawn shop where he once found a great deal on a really old pocketknife. Bought it for $10 and later traded it for a small Harley. Or something like that.

No, what amazes me is when we walk into these places and people know him.
...
Brown and I have been gallivanting around the countryside - when we can get away with it - since I arrived at The News Leader 25 years ago. I like to tell people we discovered early on that we were a good match because we shared the same ambition: to stay out of the office as much as possible.

The visual imagery of Brown and the verbal imagery of Lohmann. It doesn't get much better than that.
I actually talked with Bob Brown about this book -- I believe it was when we were at the U.S. Senate debate at the Greenbriar in July 2014 -- and how much I have always enjoyed his photos from around the Commonwealth. It is a delight to now have "Back Roads" to read and linger over the words and pictures. Now if I can catch up with these two and have them sign it....

Thursday, February 05, 2015

The Republican State Leadership Committee (RSLC) will benefit from a
fundraiser being hosted by former Majority Leader Eric Cantor and former
Florida Governor Jeb Bush later this month at the Jefferson Hotel in
Richmond, Virginia. The long-time friends will team up for the February
16th event that was first mentioned by Cantor at an event in January
(see Virginia Republicans look to the future).

Sunday, January 04, 2015

This is an invitation to come over and visit us at LynnRMitchell.com. We are a group blog with regular contributors Kurt Michael who is our managing editor, David Karaffa who is on the Augusta County Board of Supervisors, Daniel Cortez who is a distinguished Vietnam veteran and award winning writer-broadcaster, and myself. I serve as executive editor and do much of the writing and photography.

We opened up shop in April 2014 and by year's end we had published over 900 posts from the four regular contributors and our 23 guest writers who covered a wide variety of issues.

I started my SWAC Girl blog in February 2006 -- almost nine years ago -- and have been writing on an almost daily basis since. However, I find myself posting less and less at this location since starting LynnRMitchell.com in 2014 so we would love to see everyone head on over and check us out where I still post everything from back roads to historical sites along with coverage of political issues from veteran politicos.

Saturday, December 20, 2014

Everyone loves the lights of the season so pile the kids in the car
and head to Staunton’s Gypsy Hill Park “Celebration of Holiday Lights.”
Drive around the two-mile loop and gaze, ooh, and ahh over the dozens of
Christmas displays set up by area organizations. Each year tens of
thousands of vehicles take part in this holiday treat. Open daily now
through the New Year, the lights will be on from 5-11 p.m. offering a
delightful treat for young and old.... (continue reading here)

As I was growing up, a tradition in our family was for
my parents to give us ornaments each year from places they had
traveled. My husband and I continued the tradition with our children …
so we have a number of “special” ornaments that are placed on the tree
year after year.

This year was no different. As I carefully
unwrapped the tissue paper from around one particular ornament, memories
flooded back as I saw the hand-painted ceramic decoration for the tree.
It was a jack-in-the-box painted in 1975 by a 10-year-old boy named
Stacy. I held the ornament in my hand and remembered back to the days
when I worked at Children’s Hospital in Richmond.

Stacy touched my heart more than any other
child I came in contact with because of his devilish sincerity. I loved
that child. He was from southwestern Virginia, one of many children from
a large, down-on-their-luck Appalachian family. As best I can remember,
the accident that changed his life occurred when he was playing with
his siblings and they tied him to a tree, piled leaves at the base of
the tree, and set the leaves on fire. Stacy was horribly burned, so much
so that much of both legs and part of one arm had to be amputated. He
came to Children’s Hospital for rehabilitation.

The patients at the hospital lived in dorms and received daily treatment as well as schooling. Far.... (continue reading here)

Friday, December 19, 2014

There’s Kindles and laptops and video games and smart phones and
every other device available out there but the wonderful thing is that
libraries are still as popular as ever. With a wide selection of
seasonal reading selections, a trip to the library provides hours of
entertainment for kids and parents during school vacation over the
holidays. (continue reading here)

Friday, December 05, 2014

Staff Sgt. Matthew Ammerman, a native of Noblesville, Ind., was assigned
to 3rd Battalion, 7th Special Forces Group (Airborne) when he died Dec.
3, 2014, as a result of wounds received in combat. (continue reading here)

While I normally do not give such articles much consideration, the editorial written by the Daily Caller and promoted by Tom White is the most appalling editorial I have read in my time engaged in conservative politics.

Not
only are the accusations implied here heinous and logically flawed,
they are written (and promoted) in the name of journalism. This article
is not news. This article is not journalism. (continue reading here)

In my 45 years as a writer-broadcaster and political media operative,
this remains the worst breach of journalistic ethics I have ever seen. I
find the author and editors of the Daily Caller
reprehensible to suggest, by inference through association, that the
son of former Virginia Congressman Eric Cantor had anything to do with
the alleged gang rape reportedly occurring at the University of Virginia
in 2012 during a fraternity party.

Wednesday, December 03, 2014

Jeb Bush. Not conservative enough. Try as I might, it
remains impossible to see these two concepts as even remotely related.
John Ellis Bush, the second son of George Herbert Walker Bush and
Barbara Bush, who during his first run for Florida governor in 1994
cheerfully called himself a head-banging conservative, a hang-’em-by-the-neck
conservative … who during his second run for Florida governor in 1998
had to craft for himself a more compassionate persona so as not to scare
off independent voters … that Jeb Bush has come to be viewed with suspicion by the uber-conservative, Tea Party wing of his Republican Party?

Tuesday, December 02, 2014

State Senator Emmett Hanger has not announced if he intends to seek
reelection for the 24th Senate District seat that he has held since 1996
but one challenger has already announced and a second is set to make
his announcement today. (continue reading here)

Saturday, November 29, 2014

The Hill has their list of 13 Republicans most likely to be nominees for the Republican presidential nomination for 2016 (see 13 Republicans most likely to win WH). I don’t agree with some of their choices but it makes for interesting speculation.

Thursday, November 27, 2014

"Reflect upon your present blessings, of which every man has plenty; not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some." -- Charles Dickens

The writers at LynnRMitchell.com
-- Daniel Cortez, David Karaffa, Kurt Michael, and myself -- extend Thanksgiving greetings with gratitude to our readers for helping us become a successful statewide voice in the Virginia conservative blogosphere. We wish you a joyful day with family and friends as America pauses to give thanks for the blessings we all enjoy. Have a safe and happy Thanksgiving.